When you want to cook new recipes for the entire family or a large gathering, chances are that there’ll be plenty of leftovers. Throwing them out can be costly and wasteful. Not only does cooking with leftovers reduce kitchen waste, it’s also a lot less time-consuming to put together pre-cooked ingredients, and easier on the purse strings. So if you’ve ever found yourself unsure of what to do with the remainders, here are five tasty recipes for leftovers.
Before we dive in, here’s a quick reminder of the best ways to store food in the kitchen, because good ingredients are still key to cooking successfully with leftovers. Once cooked, foods are best stored in the fridge in glass or plastic containers with airtight lids. First, allow dishes to cool to room temperature and then transfer the meals into the containers. You can store chopped leftover vegetables right away in lidded boxes in the fridge.
Leftover pasta dishes
Cooked a large pot of spaghetti or fusilli last night? You’re not alone. It’s easy to boil too much of this kitchen cupboard staple. Luckily, pasta is quick to reheat the next day assuming you’ve stored it correctly. You could also throw together a nutritious pasta salad with some chopped vegetables and a creamy dressing if you’re in a rush. For some more creative ideas try these:
- Make a frittata by frying cooked pasta together with eggs, parmesan, and sauce.
- Try an Asian stir fry or spicy fried noodles.
- Or how about a pasta bake?
Easy potato recipes
Potatoes are another common ingredient that we often end up cooking too much of. Luckily there are tons of different recipes to try with boiled potatoes.
- Bubble and squeak is a fab and quick way to throw together your leftover veg. You can eat it for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Preparation is simple: mash the potatoes, chop the veg, preheat and oil the pan and then add it all together pressing it into the shape of an omelet. Yum!
- Roast or fry leftover boiled potatoes for a warming winter meal.
- Perhaps you’re in the mood for some potato and leek soup or a grilled potato salad. Both are simple recipes to use what you have left.
What to do with leftover fruit?
Got a bit carried away when you bought a whole box of mangoes? Are your bananas turning brown already? We don’t blame you. In our best attempt to stick to five a day, we often forget that fresh fruit comes with a tight expiration date. Smoothies are a simple and quick option to make use of these delicious sweet snacks. If you need some convincing, here are the main benefits of drinking smoothies. But there’s much more you can do with leftover fruits.
- Get baking! Try an apple or pear pie. Or how about that banana bread?
- Make delicious, nutritious ice cream. Just mash up your bananas, add some cocoa powder and voilà, you’ve got yourself a healthier variant of chocolate ice cream.
- Not into baking or freezing? How about boiling your berries in a pot with some water and sugar for some homemade jelly. Not only does the process preserve the fruit for longer, it’ll also make for some tasty spread on that leftover toast.
